Involuntary

Brilliant film by Ruben Östlund and the cast! This is sheer perfection from the first frame to the last one, and the battle for next year's Best Swedish Film Award seems to be decided. Here is the best Swedish picture in years. It displays in five parallel stories how people reject from speaking up when they have the opportunity, due to more or less rational fears, and once the right moment has slipped away it becomes multiply difficult later.

Most of the parts are played by actors unknown to me, and they are all fantastic. In every scene the dialogue is performed the way people actually speaks in real life (And I'm Swedish, I know what it should sound like.), it's believable and absorbing. Nowhere to be heard is the theatrical and stiff line delivery that so often haunts Swedish cinema. The images are often still in unorthodox angles, while people pass in and out. It is highly innovative and it works out extraordinarily well.

The film is filled with hilarious lines, but it is serious all the way, and the humour is of the kind that makes me shiver with embarrassment. It is downright painful to watch these awkward situations and know that I could so easily be a part of something similar in real life. Not least, the problems with partying and binging is displayed in a refreshingly non-romantic manner. It is all, simply, brilliant!

I was really surprised by this film. It consists of 5 independent stories and though they are completely different they share something common to human beings. Well "Short Cuts" was great and I can really recommend "Fyra nyanser av brunt" in the same genre. But "De ofrivilliga" has something extra. I bet you can recognize some of the awkward situation described in this film.

It's pretty annoying with the strange camera angles and it's a bit like the habit of using too many close-ups that some directors use. But to some extend it makes sense. You learn to focus on the situation and the interaction instead of the people in the scenes.

And I really must say that it's fantastic how a writer can invent the strange incidents in the film. I keep thinking - this must have happened for someone in real life. No one can have that wild an imagination.

The camera angles were interestingly different. Made you think about the conversations and not focus so much on the shallowness of what I call: eye candy syndrome, which Hollywood so likes to depict. One thing that did disturb me when reading reviews was that a few of the very positive ones contained the same misspellings. That is hardly a coincidence. Back to the film: There seemed to be too many thematic subplots going on, despite other reviews that seem to say: "hey, that mirrors life". But generally, the film was entertaining and was an interesting diversion. The homo-erotic male-bonding deal with the guys seemed a bit contrived. I couldn't figure the rhyme or reason there.

For the last few months i've stumbled upon quite a few Swedish movies, and for me, personally, it's a grand discovery! I love and appreciate low budget movies. For me, producing more with less always seemed an outcome of cinematic expertise. That kind of Minimalism makes this movie great. The themes and situations displayed in this movie are so relatable, and i bet you'll find your self giggling (for a wide Spectrum of reasons: from sympathy to embarrassment). It's light and have a natural flow, the acting is very authentic and sensitive. The script is superb, and the camerawork also contributes to the "Ostlund experience", together forming an honourable picture.

Brilliantly simple in its story, yet it engages you right throughout, Simple doesn't necessarily mean it is not deep and meaningful. This film with its raw truth and its meaningful exchanges, I'ts a typical low budget foreign film, in that it is brilliant(though some of the low budget films are not).

Brilliant acing by the actors, especially the young girls, and a brilliantly shot film with unusual angles and unusual filming shots, that work well to frame the story.

A Swedish take on life with dramatic acting and choice of matter, brilliant on all levels and a must see, a clear 8/10.